An Ember of Rebellion
by jw1699
Summary: [AU] For the last twenty years, Asuma has led a charmed life as the second scion of the Sarutobi clan. However, everything was shattered with the murder of Sarutobi Hiruzen in a desperate uprising by the Uchiha. Forced to flee into the Konoha underground, it will take every ounce of wit and charm that Asuma has left to spark a rebellion to restore his father's broken mantle.
1. Chapter 1

**An Ember of Rebellion**

[AU] For the last twenty years, Asuma has led a charmed life as the second scion of the Sarutobi clan. However, everything was shattered with the murder of Sarutobi Hiruzen in a desperate uprising by the Uchiha. Forced to flee into the Konoha underground, it will take every ounce of wit and charm that Asuma has left to spark a rebellion to restore his father's broken mantle.

* * *

Cloaked to cover his distinguishing features, Asuma lounged in a decrepit bar nestled in one of the more unsavory districts of Konoha.

"_Three days."_

It had been three days since a quarter of the village had been burned to the ground. Three days since a new power had seized rule over the remainder of Konoha. Three days since Uchiha Itachi and Shisui carved their legends into history by defeating the aged Sandaime Hokage in direct combat.

"_My old man was a fool to always believe in the best of people. Yet every dream ends when the dreamer awakens."_

As he took the last drag on the stub of his cigarette, Asuma carefully eyed the posters plastered on the side of the alleyway.

"_Though I suppose it's gratifying in a twisted way to see my own face splayed across an entire alley's worth of posters."_

As the last living Sarutobi, there were few men hunted as fiercely by the new provisional government. Luckily for Asuma, he was about to meet one of the few able to claim that dubious honor. He perked up as he heard the barstool next to him shift as a new arrival sidled up to his table.

"The new bounty on your head is enough to retire across two lifetimes", drawled Kakashi, as he flashed his trademark eye-smile at his old friend, "What exactly did you do to anger our esteemed new government so much?"

Pointedly ignoring the question, Asuma gave a crooked smile back, "I had a feeling you'd come find me eventually." With a slight flicker of wind chakra, the door to the bar slammed shut behind them.

"Lucky for you, I'm in the market of looking for other hunted men. It's not like you can walk around in broad daylight either right? – I heard what you did at the Western Gate."

"And how exactly do you plan to take on an entire government with a hypothetical team of two?" deadpanned Kakashi., "Forgive my lack of optimism here, but the Uchiha have rounded up the majority of the old regime's sympathizers. Their will to fight died with Sarutobi Hiruzen."

Asuma exhaled a plume of smoke into the air and paused.

"The human spirit is a funny thing. As long as it has some small modicum of hope left to latch onto, people will rally towards it like a raging flame. No matter how many times you douse it water, it's near impossible to truly quench the flames of rebellion – that's the legacy my father left in the Will of Fire."

Kakashi chuckled to himself as he felt the semblance of a real smile for the first time in a last few days.

"Alright, you've always had a way with words, I'll give you that much. Count me in for whatever scheme you've been cooking up", returned Kakashi.

"Welcome to the team", echoed Asuma as he tossed away the stub of his burnt cigarette and turned to make contact with Kakashi's uncovered eye, grinning.

"Now, how about we pay a visit to our old friends at the Military Police Headquarters to celebrate."

* * *

Asuma and Kakashi glided through the moonless night as they hurried towards Konoha's military district. If his plan was to work, Asuma needed a team. And there was no better place to begin recruiting than Konoha's Military Police Headquarters where the most dangerous prisoners are kept.

Both of them were dressed in pitch black. Asuma fingered his favorite set of trench knives as they edged closer to the Military Police Headquarters. As he silently landed behind a fence just outside the building, he signaled to Kakashi to begin the plan they had previously discussed. Kakashi disappeared around the corner of the bar, and Asuma hopped against the outer wall of the building.

"_Three men guarding the eastern entrance. And I can sense the signatures of another four men further inside."_

Asuma quickly blitzed the nearest unsuspecting guard and quickly incapacitated the man with a silent slash to the jugular. Before the man had even hit the ground, Asuma was already in the space of the second guard. However, this one was ready for him with a short tanto blade held menacingly in a backhand grip.

Bracing himself, Asuma locked blades with the second guard. He scanned his surroundings for anything that he could use to his advantage as he remembered the first guard splayed lifelessly just behind.

Pushing to add torque onto his trench knives, Asuma took advantage of their maneuverability in close combat forcing the second guard backwards. As the man tripped over the corpse of his fallen comrade, that was all the opening that Asuma needed to bury his left knife into the man's gut.

At the very same moment, Asuma caught a glimpse of crimson reflecting off the surface of his knife.

"_Shit! I shouldn't have ignored the third guard for so long."_

The katana of the remaining guard whistled through the air as Asuma arched backwards to avoid the bloody arc. His opponent snarled at Asuma as his red eyes spun menacingly in the dark.

"_Two tomoe Sharingan. An ability that affords my opponent a certain degree of precognition."_

"_I suppose I'll just have to fight dirty against such a supposedly all-seeing power."_

Asuma took a slow breath and reached inwards to brush his chakra circuits. He weaved backwards as his opponent released a volley of shuriken accompanied by some vicious katana slashes. And with his free hand, he threw his left trench knife at the man's head.

His opponent smirked as he whipped rightwards at the same instant that Asuma's knife left his hand. Asuma's knife sailed past its target into open space as his opponent quickly closed in on Asuma's now vulnerable left flank.

And at that instant, Asuma jerked his empty hand backwards as a chakra string flared into existence immediately reversing the flight of his wayward knife. The knife shot back as if controlled by a puppeteer and buried itself into his unsuspecting opponent's back.

"_Learned that one during my deployment on the desert front during the Second Shinobi War"_

Capitalizing on his opponent's surprise, Asuma leaped against his opponent grabbing the handle from his now returned knife. Infusing a slight edge of wind chakra into the blade, Asuma effortlessly bisected the man's spinal cord ending their brief exchange.

Careful not to get any more blood on his cloak, Asuma rummaged through the dead guard's belongings until he found a small metallic ID card: Uchiha Sekijou – Chuunin.

Catching the scent of fried ozone, he looked up as he saw Kakashi slide into his periphery giving him the signal that he had disposed of the other four guards that Asuma had sensed earlier.

"Bad news – one of the guards managed to set off a flare before I incapacitated him", grunted Kakashi.

"Then we better hurry" deadpanned Asuma, as they both ran towards the now unguarded jail cells.

Using the metallic ID card that he had pilfered off of the dead Uchiha, Asuma unlocked the scanners to the inner cells. Kakashi looked around before cursing, "Damnit, we were too late. It looks like all of these cells are empty"

Out of the darkness, a raspy voice rattled from the cell furthest from them, "Not quite, they haven't executed all of us just yet."

Asuma walked over to the occupied cell and stared at the lanky man sitting on the wooden cot inside.

He peered inside and smiled when he locked eyes with a familiar scarred face.

"Nara Shikaku – I had a feeling that you'd still be alive"

Shikaku gave a sardonic smile, "The only reason I'm still here is their desire to wring out every last drop of information on Konoha's military resources before they off me."

Asuma unlocked the cell using the stolen ID key, "Between Kakashi and me, I'd say our little team is in need of a strategist for the near future. This team of two could use the mind of the ex-Jounin Commander. What do you say?"

"How troublesome...", sighed Shikaku. "It seems I always end up throwing my lot in with you troublesome Sarutobi", he quipped as he climbed out of his cell. Taking a deep breath, Shikaku flared his chakra letting out a content sound.

And with that, the shadows writhed around them cloaking the three as they evaded the swarming Uchiha patrols hunting for Konoha's newest criminals.

* * *

Uchiha Shisui paced back and forth inside his study.

"_Three days"_

It had been three days since the Uchiha had risen up against the degenerating regime of the Sandaime Hokage. Three days since they had chased those monsters Danzo and Orochimaru out of the village. Three days since they had eradicated the military dictatorship of the Hokage system and set up a provisionary republic in its place.

Shisui was certainly surprised that the Uchiha coup had been so successful. Discontent within the clan had been brewing for generations, but they had never found the right trigger to actually act on their thoughts.

That was until the diplomatic disaster with the Kumogakure treaty.

"_I still can't believe that the Third had fallen so low to promote peace with Kumo even after the fiasco of the attempted Hyuuga kidnapping. And he even had only made it worse by surrendering Hyuuga Hizashi to try and appease Kumo's demands."_

Embittered by such a betrayal, the Hyuuga clan had thrown in their discontent with the Uchiha and withdrawn all of their clansmen from active duty on the night of the coup.

Sighing, Shisui sank into a chair trying to organize all of the new responsibilities he had to juggle as Konoha's newest Jounin Commander. Their forces were at an all-time low, and resources were running low. To make things worse, the Nine-Tails was still nowhere to be found.

Taking a break from his planning, Shisui cracked open a worn book on his desk as his Sharingan flared to life.

"_Medical Physiology: Advancements through the Ages"_

He'd never wanted to become a frontlines fighter – he was only there because his battle prowess had put him at the pinnacle even amongst the vaunted Uchiha clan. He gave a melancholic sigh as he pondered his choices.

"_To think I threw myself into this system so that one day I could protect those who needed it most; yet all I know is fire, blood, and death."_

He frowned as he flipped through the book, Sharingan photographically searing the information into memory. He checked the clock on the wall as he finished the last page.

"_126 seconds; At least my reading speed is improving."_

He tossed the finished book onto a growing mountain of discarded reads next to his windowsill, and looked up when he heard a disturbance from outside.

Two of his officers burst into his room in a desperate hurry.

"Sir, there's been a break-in at the Administrative Tower. Two unknown assailants have collapsed the left wing around the Library. We have reports of seven injured and three dead, the intruders are both easily A-class missing nin…"

And Shisui was already gone before his officer finished his report.

* * *

"_Two A-class missing nin? The entire Land of Fire likely has less than twenty ninja in that class, and just my luck, two of them show up at my front door."_

As Shisui arrived to the scene, he immediately crouched beside one of his injured clansmen. His Sharingan flared as he summoned chakra for the mystical palm technique and began knitting together the man's deeper wounds.

However, his instinct screamed at him to move as a set of kunai sailed through the night sky.

Eyes blazing, Shisui deftly caught two of the kunai before spinning on his left heel and battering away the rest of the incoming projectiles. With three-tomoe Sharingan, he could see the path of any projectile a full second before it actually landed.

The moment he blocked the last kunai, a fist erupted from the shadows as a masked woman took a vicious swipe at his throat. Using one the kunai he caught, he brought the blade up just in time to intercept the swipe of a tanto from a hooded man who had emerged from a sealing array behind the woman.

Just as the woman's fist was about to smash into his windpipe, Shisui's chakra roared to life utilizing his signature Shunshin no Jutsu. Time dilated around him as he maneuvered behind his two assailants.

The Shunshin no Jutsu was a technique that afforded the user rapid movement almost akin to teleportation. However, the weakness of the technique was its tunnel vision forcing movement in predictably linear paths. However with a three-tomoe Sharingan, Shusui had reformed the B-rank technique into something borderline S-class.

As he was about to plant his kunai into the masked woman's back, the hooded man twisted in midair and released a kick that even Sharingan had difficulty tracking.

"_So fast! It's been awhile since I've faced such an unpredictable foe."_

Shisui quickly weaved a subtle Genjutsu of himself feinting backwards. As the hooded man over-extended himself into Shisui's mirage, Shisui smashed his fist into the man's temple.

Yet at the last second, a sealing array activated an invisible barrier subtly deflecting his fist from making contact. Instead of a direct headshot, Shisui's blow instead ripped the hood off of the man.

Shisui caught a flash a sun-kissed yellow hair and blue eyes before the man flipped his hood back on and skidded backwards.

"_Could it be? If it's really him, then chances are the masked woman is…"_

His female assailant moved into position covering the masked man's retreat. She quickly glanced back at the masked man with a worried expression.

"Minato, are you injured?"

The masked man sighed, "What did I say about using our real names? Well, he's probably recognized us anyways in that last slip, Kushina"

Kushina flushed red as she looked to the side embarrassed.

Taking advantage of his assailant's conversation, Shisui unleashed a volley of fire at the bickering couple.

**Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu**

He could feel Kushina's chakra flaring to life as she pressed her hands together.

**Water Release: Storm Barrier**

A deluge of water rose from the ground in response to his onslaught of fire. From the periphery of his vision, he could see chakra building up where Minato must be.

**Wind Release: Vacuum Wave**

Heavy storm winds tore through the night as they converged to where Shisui stood. With his advanced vision, he could almost see the razor sharp edges of the wind hurled towards him. Crimson eyes flaring, Shisui pressed his hands together in a form reminiscent of Kushina just a few moments prior.

**Water Release: Storm Barrier**

Shisui's own barrier of water rose in front of the onslaught of Minato's wind jutsu. However, Minato only smirked as he used his left hand to draw a small kanji in the airspace around him.

"Did you think we were completely ignorant of how the Sharingan works?"

Shisui's breath caught in his throat as a seal array exploded to life. The array began dissipating Shisui's Storm Barrier as liquid water was converted to vapor upon making contact with the explosion of chakra from the seal.

As Minato's original wind jutsu passed through Shisui's now dissipated defense, Shisui tapped his chakra in preparation for a quick escape. However, as he activated his body flicker, adamantine chains burst from the ground wrapping around his legs.

Shisui mentally cursed, _"Shit! I shouldn't have let Kushina out of my sight."_

Unable to dodge, the elemental wind tore into Shisui leaving deep gashes across his arms which he used to shield his vitals. He passively summoned his chakra to begin knitting the flesh back together, but was interrupted by the arc of Minato's tanto.

As Minato directly charged in, Shisui brought up his kunai to exchange a flurry of blows with the blonde.

Fortunately for Shisui, the Sharingan's strongest suit was direct combat. Even against the darkness of night, he could almost see shadows of future blows stretching from Minato's form.

While deflecting a slash to his abdomen from Minato, Shisui quickly scanned his surroundings for Kushina. He was instantly wary when he caught sight of her carrying a large scroll on her back that she didn't have before.

"_So that's why they're here. I wonder which scroll they're trying to steal from the Hokage's Library."_

Superior in single combat, Shisui pushed Minato to retreat with some ambidextrous maneuvering of his kunai.

"_I can't let them get away now. Perhaps it's time to truly use these cursed eyes?"_

"Kushina, get out of here!", yelled Minato.

As Shisui quickly pooled together chakra to unleash his most vaunted ocular technique, a murder of crows suddenly swarmed before Kushina.

A hand materialized out of the swarm, grabbing Kushina by the neck.

A voice floated over towards Shisui, "I'm surprised they gave you so much trouble, cousin. Perhaps you're losing your edge?"

Itachi had arrived.

* * *

Asuma yawned as he sank into his makeshift bed. The three of them had opted to convert an old wartime bunker into their base of operations. The old room probably hadn't seen life since the end of the Second Shinobi War, but there were still basic necessities like canned food, candles, and futons for the three men.

"You aren't supposed to still be alive", mused Shikaku glancing towards Asuma as he stretched out on an empty futon.

Kakashi cracked a curious eye at Asuma as he pretended to read his trademark orange book, "Yeah, everyone by now has seen the ruins of both the Hokage Mansion and the Sarutobi Clan Compound. Those were the first hits of the coup after all."

Asuma lit a cigarette and let out a long sigh, "My old man saved my life. I was with him when they blew the Hokage Mansion to bits. He flooded the entire room with chakra saturated with the water release. It was enough to keep us safe from the explosion that the Uchiha had primed."

"And the Sarutobi compound?", Kakashi asked gently.

Asuma gripped the emerald pendant that hung around his neck tightly. "Blown completely to pieces; they thought that's where my old man initially was and sent that bastard Uchiha Shisui in to conjure up a firestorm."

He bit his cheek hard enough to draw blood, "Uchiha Shisui is a monster hiding in human skin. The only people at the Sarutobi compound were my mother and my seven year old nephew. Even that didn't stop those damned Uchiha from torching the entire building without confirming who was inside."

The three men fell into a melancholic silence as Asuma fiddled with his cigarette, Shikaku pretended to sleep, and Kakashi stared at his book.

"I'm going out", grunted Asuma as he dusted off his pants and wrapped his cloak around himself, "I have a meeting with an information broker later tonight"

Kakashi lazily flipped another page, "Do you want cover?"

"Nah, it's fine", replied Asuma, "She's an old friend; stay here and read your smutty book. You'll need all the rest you can get before our next little excursion."

* * *

Asuma surveyed his surroundings as he quietly maneuvered through the crowds of Konoha's Red Light District.

He ducked into a musty doorway on the corner of the street. The inside of the building was dimly lit and filled with a thick hazy smoke. While prostitution wasn't illegal in Konoha, brothels and the sex trade were avoided by all except the seediest of Konoha's underground.

An old woman with a hawkish gaze gave Asuma a raised eyebrow, "All of our girls are taken tonight, come back another time, Stranger."

"I'm not here to cause any trouble", returned Asuma as he raised his hands placatingly.

He reached into his pocket and tossed her a few ryo, "Can't a weary traveler get a cold drink or two?"

The matron eyed him suspiciously before reaching under the bar and tossing him a bottle of lukewarm sake. Asuma caught it deftly with one hand and settled down into the nearest sofa.

He quietly sipped the liquid and winced as the cheap sake burned his throat.

"_She's late. But then again, when is she ever not?"_

As if summoned by the devil itself, a purple-haired woman sauntered into the room with a seductive smirk on her face. Her heels clicked on the ground as she cut her way through to Asuma's sofa. Grabbing the sake out of his hand, she curled up beside him and took a long drag of drink.

Asuma raised an eyebrow at the newest arrival, "I paid good money for that drink, you know."

The woman flashed a predatory grin back, "Then how about I make it up to you in one of the private rooms?"

He forced a blush on his face as she led him by hand to one of the rooms upstairs.

The second the door shut, he schooled his features to match the annoyance he was feeling inside.

"Cut the theatrics Anko, would it kill you to ever be on time for once?"

"Oi Ma-chan, I've got a reputation to keep. Keeping a schedule on clockwork is a good way to get killed in our profession" grumbled Anko.

Asuma smiled and tossed her a hefty bag of ryo, "So did you find the location of the Sarutobi clan scrolls or was it too difficult for your team of idiots?"

She gave him a mock glare in return, "Of course I did, who do you think I am? Two of my men spotted the Uchiha moving the salvaged contents of the Sarutobi Compound into the Hyuuga Compound earlier today. Good luck getting in there though, that wasn't part of my contract."

"Don't worry about the little details", replied Asuma as he tossed her an extra ryo, "Go get yourself a drink on me. I'd say it was a pleasure doing business, but.. "

Anko settled into the bed and pouted as Asuma turned to leave. "Leaving so soon? We've got the room for at least another hour" as she arched her back enticingly towards him.

He gave her a long look before sighing and settled down in the bed next to her.

At that instant, "Anko" erupted into a plume of smoke right into Asuma's face. Through his coughing fit, he could hear Anko's laughter as she climbed towards an open window nearby.

"You're always too easy to tease Ma-chan. I'd love to stay, but I'm already thirty minutes late to my next appointment", grinned Anko as she leapt out into the night.

Asuma couldn't help but chuckle to himself as he listened to her laughter fade into the night.

"_Stay safe Anko, the next few weeks are going to be a dangerous time to walk the nights"_

* * *

_Back at the Konoha Administrative Building_

Shisui breathed out a sigh of relief as he watched Itachi lithely emerge from a haze of crows.

"L-l-let go of me you freak" wheezed Kushina as Itachi's chokehold on her grew tighter and tighter.

"KUSHINA", panicked Minato as he sprinted almost too quickly for even Sharingan to track.

Shisui turned curiously towards Minato as a bright blue sphere of chakra whirred to life in the center of his palm.

**RASENGAN**

Minato slammed the spinning mass of chakra into Itachi's chest only for the Uchiha to explode into a murder of crows. However, the now freed Kushina dropped to the ground gasping for air and massaging her neck.

Itachi reformed to the right of Shisui shooting him a critical look.

Shisui grinned weakly and held up his hands, "Sorry, these two are a lot more troublesome than they look"

"We don't have time to waste, cousin. Let's finish this quickly and take the jinchuuriki into custody"

Itachi closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he built up chakra behind his eyes.

**Mangekyo Sharingan**

Shisui watched as Itachi's eyes morphed into the spinning pinwheel characteristic of their clan's most powerful technique.

The two Uchiha glanced at one another before taking off towards their opponents.

Shisui flickered just behind Kushina and unleashed a vicious kick towards her head. As she ducked, Itachi emerged from in front of her with a kunai swinging for her jugular. Before he could connect the blow, Minato had materialized in front of the Kushina to deflect Itachi's blow with his own.

Taking advantage of Minato's engagement, Shisui wordlessly cast a **Substitution Jutsu **quickly switching positions with the still recovering Kushina and burying a kunai into Minato's back.

Blood splayed into the night as Minato violently turned around backhanding Shisui with a fist. He then quickly retreated backwards with Kushina as his wound began to bleed more profusely.

"The puncture wound has collapsed your left lung", Shisui offered as he eyed at Minato's injured form. "If you don't get aid now, I'd give you five minutes top before you drown in your own blood. Surrender now and we can get you to a hospital immediately; this doesn't have to end in death."

Minato bit back a retort before summoning the chakra to scrawl a seal array on his own flesh. Immediately, a cloud of red vapor began emerging from his wound.

Shisui eyed the blonde curiously before realizing, _"That's the same seal he used before!_ _Except instead of converting liquid water to steam, he's using it to convert his own blood to mist to prevent himself from drowning."_

"M-minato, get out of h-h-here", mumbled Kushina, "it's me and my tenant that these two are after."

"Never", growled Minato as he settled into a loose battle stance glaring at the two Uchiha. "Not until death do us apart."

Kushina only smiled sadly as she looked at Minato's wobbling form.

"Sorry Minato, but you mean more to me than this damned village ever did anyways", Kushina said softly as she slapped a teleportation array on Minato's good shoulder.

"I want you as far away as possible before I have to use my last resort"

She gave his hand a quick squeeze as the sealing array activated warping him away to safety.

"Take care, Minato, I'll meet you back at our base, hmm? You better have a hot cup of tea ready for me when I get back…"

As the seal array consumed the last of Minato's form, he shifted into an ethereal form as he was transported back to the location of the original array. Yet, even the powers of time and space itself couldn't hide his anguished cry into the night.

Wiping at her eye, Kushina now turned to face the Uchiha cousins.

"You'll find that I'm not as merciful as Minato. He isn't a monster like you and I,"

And with that, a miasma of demonic chakra erupted into the calm night.

Shisui had to squint as the pure unadulterated chakra flowing from Kushina almost blinded his hyper-sensitive Sharingan. He could barely make out the form of a chakra construct swinging malevolently behind the woman.

"Take no prisoners, Kyuubi, let them know fear", whispered Kushina.

**ONE tail**

A tail of dark-red chakra erupted from Kushina's form; she dashed towards Itachi and arched a clawed fist back to tear into Itachi who only narrowly dodged by the precognitive abilities afforded by his eyes. As he drifted backwards, Itachi spit out an enormous fireball at Kushina which she quickly vaporized with a swish of her tail.

**TWO tails**

Kushina's twin tails whipped at Shisui in a corrosive explosion of chakra. Shisui flickered behind the ruins of the library building as the chakra seeped into walls melting both steel and wood. The world around him shook as the metal supports of the building creaked under the disrepair of its foundations.

**THREE tails**

Kushina let out a howl of rage as her chakra flooded the entire grounds slowly suffocating the entire area in a cloak of death. Kushina's once human features had begun to mix with the more animalistic ones of her demon. As Shisui stared at the demonic sclera of the Kyuubi, he felt a wave of icy fear wash across his body. It was only his years of battle experience that kept him moving one step ahead of the fiery death that the Kyuubi's visage promised.

**FOUR tails**

Itachi attempted to block Kushina's clawed swipes with his tanto. However, her demonic chakra quickly disintegrated the ANBU-grade steel blade in mere seconds. Shisui jumped forwards unleashing a volley of fireballs only for the jinchuuriki to bat them away carelessly.

**FIVE tails**

Shisui's Sharingan spun into overdrive as he barely dodged the spears of chakra erupting from the enraged jinchuuriki. Even with the ability to flicker almost instantaneously, he still took some deep cuts from Kushina's onslaught of attacks.

**SIX tails**

The pressure from the Kyuubi's chakra was so heavy that Shisui struggled to breathe. He could hear cries in the distance of other shinobi mobilizing to engage the demon. The jinchuuriki's form had lost all vestiges of humanity at this point. It prowled through the rubble on four legs, glaring hatefully at the Uchiha cousins.

"_I can't let even more people get hurt. Itachi and I will have to settle this before the reinforcements arrive.", panicked Shisui._

**SEVEN tails**

Itachi took a deep gash across his chest right as Shisui flickered next to him preventing the jinchuuriki from bisecting his torso into two. Itachi turned to Shisui,

"Get the demon to stay still somehow. If I can make direct eye contact with it, we might just get out of this alive", yelled Itachi.

**EIGHT tails**

Blood everywhere, Shisui could barely think straight as the corrosive chakra prevented his healing jutsu from closing his wounds. He flickered behind a tree as Kushina's latest attack razed what was left of the surrounding buildings to the ground. Spinning in frustration, the demon let loose another roar of defiance at the Uchiha cousins.

**NINE tails**

The demon let out a victorious cry as it arched up on its back legs and began forming a mass of condensed chakra at its muzzle. Everything became deadly still as Shisui could only watch in terrified awe at the sheer concentration of power pressed into the attack.

And that's when Itachi appeared beside Shisui.

**Seshinkai no Yomi: Tsukiyomi**

"_Could the legends be true?", thought Shisui, "I hope Itachi knows that he is gambling our lives on an old myth from times before written history?" _

And as if Shisui's prayers were answered by heaven itself, the night stilled as the demon froze mid-action under the haze of Itachi's Mangekyou.

Beside Shisui, Itachi's body began to quiver as his own chakra was depleting from his body at the pace of a raging river.

Shisui placed his hands on Itachi's shoulders and began to focus his own chakra to supplement Itachi's emptied network.

With the influx of Shisui's stores, Itachi's Sharingan began to spin once more.

**Busshitsukai to Hikari: Amaterasu!**

Itachi fell to the ground in exhaustion as black flames erupted across the jinchuuriki's form. Shisui dropped to his cousin's side and quickly began running medical diagnostics across his cousin.

The heavenly black flames of the Goddess Amaterasu... This was no elemental fire; it was said that these legendary flames would burn for seven days and seven nights.

The Kyuubi howled into the sky as the black flames burned relentlessly across its mortal form. The corrosive chakra began to recede into the flailing demon as the fox-like attributes gave way to Kushina's human form.

By the time reinforcements had arrived, Kushina had fully returned to her human form, screaming into the night as the black flames burned her entire body.

"Is she still alive?", whispered Shisui as he felt sick watching the woman's hoarse voice scream for the release of death as she clawed at her own burns.

Uchiha Fugaku stepped up beside him gazing dispassionately at Kushina, "She's a jinchuuriki. Her regenerative abilities will keep her from crossing the edge of death as long as she has chakra. Add in her Uzumaki heritage, and I wouldn't be surprised if her regenerative capabilities hold out for another few days"

"She's already lost. Look at her, no one deserves to die like this", gritted out Shisui.

"She?", questioned Fugaku, "as far as I can tell, there's no humanity to be found in the likes of jinchuuriki. I see your time on the battlefield still hasn't yet cured that weak heart of yours, Shisui."

"Fugaku, I beg you, close your eyes and listen to her screams. Tell me that's not a human crying for respite in death", bit out Shisui.

He took out a kunai, and levelled his aim at the woman's throat. "If none of you will approach her, then I will end this travesty"

Fugaku wrapped his hand in an iron-clad grip around Shisui's wrist, "You will be doing no such thing, Uchiha Shisui."

"As the Patriarch of the Uchiha Clan, I order you to stand down. War has no room for mercy, and we aren't ready to move the Kyuubi into a new vessel just yet."

Fugaku turned to the surrounding reinforcements, "Any earth specialists here, hollow out a confinement pit under the jinchuuriki and bury her alive. Take care that the flames don't spread anywhere else."

Shisui felt like puking as he watched the proceedings. As Fugaku and the other men filed away, he took one last look at Kushina. She was wordlessly writhing on the ground now, her voicebox having given out from having been screamed hoarse.

Slowly, Shisui knelt beside her as his eyes slowly morphed into the characteristic pinwheel shape of his Mangekyou Sharingan forever searing the memory of the atrocity into his mind. And in a moment of impulse, he whispered to Kushina,

"Kotoamatsukai"

An illusion of the highest caliber, the Kotoamatsukai, was Shisui's most powerful technique. As Shisui wrested control of Kushina's mind, he layered genjutsu upon genjutsu numbing out all five of her senses.

Satisfied that she could no longer feel any pain, he turned his back against the burning woman to face the night so that no one else could see the tears of blood he had cried for his once enemy.

* * *

End of Chapter 1.


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors Note: Here's the second installment of The Ember of Rebellion. I've really enjoyed writing Asuma in this chapter because I've always felt he was completely underrated in canon due to being a side-character. For narrative purposes, I've tweaked his power-scaling to allow him to hold his own in a high-level fight with some quick thinking and planning. **

* * *

As Shikaku studied the scroll that Asuma had received from his outing the previous night, he let out a whistle of appreciation.

"Anko really delivered this time; I wonder how she got her hands on a copy of the schematics for the Hyuuga Compound. These are definitely original copies from Konoha's Ministry of Construction.", mused Shikaku.

"She's been busy these last few days. After Orochimaru fled the village, Anko took advantage of the power vacuum by consolidating his abandoned agents.", replied Asuma.

Kakashi yawned in the corner of the room where he was sharpening a set of kunai, "So what's the plan tonight, boss?"

Asuma glanced over and grinned.

"I hope you like challenges – we're going to be running a heist on the Hyuuga Compound after midnight."

Kakashi blinked twice.

"Did you just say what I think you said? You want to steal from the one clan that happens to have a bloodline technique that allows them to see through walls?"

Slumping into his chair, "I don't get paid enough for this…"

"Hell, we don't get paid at all", quipped Shikaku as he began drawing the schematics into the dirt of the bunker.

"Funny you should mention that", returned Asuma, "Since our target tonight is the Hyuuga Clan Treasury, we might come out of this as wealthy men. Our heist will have two specific aims."

"First, I have good reason to believe that the Hyuuga have come into possession of some Sarutobi Clan relics including a few incredibly rare chakra theory scrolls that may fetch a nice price on the black-market even if we don't use them ourselves."

"Second, as a show of good faith, the Uchiha have delegated the Ministry of Tax and Revenue to the Hyuuga Clan. Now, if a portion of the new government's tax revenues were to go missing from the Hyuuga Treasury…"

Kakashi gave a wolf-like grin, "If we can rile tensions between the remaining noble clans, then it'll make for a more open path towards the heart of Uchiha."

"Exactly. It'll bring us one step closer to our ultimate goal", ascertained Asuma, "Complete destruction of the Uchiha inner circle, and freeing Konoha from the usurper's government."

"Before we get ahead of ourselves, let's talk about how we're going to get into the Hyuuga Compound in the first place", drawled Shikaku.

"From the schematics, it looks like the vault is in the western wing which will therefore have the highest number of guards. It may be wiser to break in through the northern wing and attack the vault from inside the compound."

Shikaku raised up two earpieces that he had been fiddling with earlier, "I'll run ops from a vantage point further back so I can guide you two during the hit. Meanwhile, Asuma will be running point and Kakashi will serve as heavy support and cover."

He then began scribbling some numbers into the dirt beside them.

"As per the active military count last year, The Hyuuga Clan has upwards sixty shinobi. Roughly ten of them are members of the Main House whereas the rest are considered Branch House members. Under no circumstance should you engage with the Main House; just a few of those would be enough to stall our operation into failure."

"You should count Hyuuga Hizashi onto that list then too", input Kakashi. "The Hyuuga Clan was willing to shift loyalties to protect this man – they clearly see some kind of value in him."

Asuma hummed thoughtfully, "I've heard some stories about Hizashi and his twin brother. While Hizashi himself wears the cursed seal of the Branch Family, his elder brother is the current Hyuuga Clan Head. Don't let the Branch status fool you; Hizashi's bloodline runs stronger than most Main House members in the clan."

Shikaku cleared his throat, "It was a few years ago, but I've actually seen Hyuuga Hizashi in combat. He's definitely unique for a Hyuuga, having ignored the clan's traditional focus on their Gentle Fist Taijutsu. Instead, he's integrated his Byakugan with an unorthodox fighting style that includes elemental Ninjutsu. But like I said, that was years ago, I don't know if he's changed."

Asuma lit a cigarette and opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted as a small puff of smoke bloomed next to Kakashi.

As the air cleared, Asuma relaxed as a small dog hopped onto Kakashi's lap.

"Yo.", waved Pakkun in his usual gruff voice. "I've got a message from the toad clan."

He scratched his back before locking eyes with Kakashi.

"Namikaze Minato wants to meet."

* * *

Minato stared desolately at the ceiling inside of his little hideaway.

"_Gone… Kushina was gone."_

"_And for what? I can't even open the Forbidden Scroll that she sacrificed herself to steal."_

He had spent hours trying to break the seal guarding the scroll. But the most he could manage was determine that the seal worked on a blood-locked mechanism instilled by the late Sandaime Hokage.

Without a blood sample, the scroll might as well be worthless.

The silence in the room was broken as a messenger toad puffed into existence next to Minato.

"Gatcha, I've got a message for ya, boss – Kashi wants ta meet ya at the old market district around noon."

Minato nodded in appreciation at the toad before it puffed back out of existence. He checked the clock before grabbing his cloak and walking out the door leaving the cold cup of tea on the table untouched.

As he meandered down the sidewalks of Konoha, he idly noted the changes brought in by recent events. The streets were noticeably quieter as if hushed by heavy tension. Rows of shops were closed as merchants had moved their wares to safer areas. The remaining people walked with an uncharacteristic haste, keeping their eyes to themselves and heads lows as if pretending to be invisible.

The old Minato would have recoiled at the sight. The old Minato had dreamed of a vibrant Konoha that was worth protecting – a home where he could have started a family with Kushina, a family he would've died to protect.

But that dream had vanished with Kushina. Snapping out of his thoughts, he swallowed his melancholy as he glimpsed a shock of silver hair.

"Heya Sensei, over here!" waved Kakashi.

Minato drifted over the Kakashi nodding his head in greeting, "Long time no see, Kakashi."

Unaware, Kakashi continued, "Where's Kushina? I've brought along a book I borrowed from her since I figured you'd bring her along anyways."

An uncomfortable silence fell as Minato refused to meet Kakashi's eyes.

"Sensei?"

"Kakashi… it might be better if you held onto that book. She's …".

As the implication of Minato's statement sunk in, Kakashi slumped against the wall.

"Sensei, **who did it**? Who killed Kushina?

Minato eyes flashed a glacial blue, "Those damned Uchiha cousins – Shisui and Itachi. And I won't rest until I return the favor to both of them."

"Kushina died recovering the Hokage's forbidden scroll, but its contents are blood-locked. I need to find your friend Sarutobi Asuma as he might be the last existing key to opening the information that Kushina died for."

At that, Kakashi gave Minato a searching look. After a moment, he beckoned Minato to follow him.

The return trip to the bunker was a quiet affair.

Upon entering the hideaway, Kakashi called out,

"Hey Asuma, we have a guest who might have an interesting proposition for you."

A moment later, Asuma emerged from the adjacent room nodding to Kakashi and giving Minato an appraising look.

"Namikaze Minato, eh? You know they put out a new bounty on your head earlier today – I think they've upped it to 440,000,000 ryo now."

Minato ignored the banter and hefted the large scroll on his back. "Sarutobi Asuma, I'm here to request your assistance. I've recently come into possession of a scroll locked by a blood-seal by the late Sandaime Hokage. As his only living son, you might be my only chance at cracking the seal."

"And what do I get out of it?" asked Asuma, ignoring Kakashi's pointed look.

Minato looked around the underground bunker filled with half-scribbled battle plans across maps of Konoha.

"I'll pledge my name to your cause", returned Minato solemnly. "Your ultimate goal is to take down the Uchiha anyways, isn't it?"

Asuma smiled, "Alright, let's get to work. All you need is a few drops of my blood, right?"

"Yeah, I've managed to tweak the seal so that it will respond to relative matches of the Sandaime's blood signature", replied Minato, "Just wipe a few drops of blood at the center of the sealing array."

Upon contact with Asuma's blood, the sealing array began to spiral counterclockwise until it fully unraveled.

Kakashi looked curiously over Minato's shoulder and asked, "Hey Sensei, what did you need this scroll for anyways?"

"It contains the prototype of a technique that I've been working on for a while now. With the Nidaime's notes on the topic, I should be able to finally finish the jutsu", responded Minato.

And with that, Minato began looking through the scroll.

"Ah, here's the page I need."

Kakashi peeked around Minato in curiosity as they looked at the open scroll.

_Hiraishin: The Flying Thunder God Technique_

* * *

Uchiha Shisui leaned against the wall of the hospital room as he recalled the events of the prior night.

He turned to Itachi who was resting in the hospital cot on the other side of the room pretending to sleep.

"Are we doing the right thing, Itachi?"

Itachi was silent for a minute before he cracked an eye open and responded,

"And who is to be our judge of right and wrong? As long as we live by the shinobi system, strength dictates morality. If we are to be judged, then it will be by men of superior force, not superior character."

Shisui let out an annoyed huff, "You know what I mean, Itachi."

"What do you want to hear then, Shisui? That we're the good guys here and everyone against us is a monster? That our ambitions aren't paved with the blood of innocent civilians? That our bloodline doesn't' grant us the ability to play god with the lives of others?"

"Then why do you fight for the clan, Itachi?", questioned Shisui softly.

Itachi took a moment before answering.

"Because I was tired of waiting for peace to knock on Konoha's gates."

"Because the Sandaime had reigned for three decades with no resolution to these endless wars in sight."

"Because I decided the shinobi system would never change without the right catalyst."

Shisui hummed, "And you believe yourself to be the catalyst, Itachi? Never thought you were the grandiose type."

Itachi was now fully turned towards Shisui, "Then why do you fight, cousin?"

"To protect our village and family. For that ideal, I'm willing to fight to a bitter end."

Itachi raised an eyebrow at Shisui, "Pretty words for an ugly reality. Our coup was not bloodless – we both have the blood of Konoha-nin staining our hands. What distinguishes the people that you point your blade at from those whom you shield?"

Shisui sighed, "For my own sanity, I have to believe that the things I do to protect my family are enough to wash away the atrocities I've committed in their name. It's why I fight for our clan; in this chaotic world, they are the only compass I have by which I direct my blade."

Itachi nodded thoughtfully, "Perhaps there is merit in such a simple answer. Get some rest, Shisui, you look like you need it."

"I wish I could, but I've been tasked with hunting down Namikaze Minato who got away last night", yawned Shisui, "It seems like he escaped with the Forbidden Scroll that Kushina filched yesterday."

And with a nod to Itachi, Shisui stretched with cat-like grace before vanishing out the window into the evening.

* * *

_The Hyuuga Compound_

Asuma fiddled with the earpiece nestled in his ear. The night was silent as he staked outside the northern wing of the Hyuuga Compound.

His earpiece crackled to life.

"_Shikaku speaking, confirming your location Asuma."_

"_Asuma speaking, position clear"_

Shikaku was perched on the sixth floor of an apartment complex just outside the Hyuuga district. With his clan jutsu and natural sensory ability, he would be able to monitor both friendly and enemy movements from afar.

While Shikaku ran operations, the plan was for Asuma to run point with support from Kakashi. Meanwhile, Minato would serve vanguard in case of outside reinforcements.

"_Four guards on the northern gate. Kakashi has moved into position." _

Asuma nodded to himself, and slowly exhaled and waited.

The noisy clacking of horse hooves on cobblestone drew his attention as he watched a man riding a horse-drawn cart pull up in front of the northern gates. A workman dressed in the traditional uniform of Konoha's Ministry of Resources climbed off of the cart with a bag of tools. He dusted off his overalls and adjusted a bandanna which did a poor job hiding the hideous burn scars on the left side of his face.

The man flicked on a flashlight and turned to address the four guards while presenting a badge.

"Takeshi here at your service. Terribly busy day – I've been working for hours on tracking down a leak in Konoha's main aqauduct. With part of the underground piping running through the Hyuuga gardens, I'm here to request permission to inspect the waterworks inside the Hyuuga Compound."

The guards looked at one another, each uncomfortably avoiding eye contact with the disfigured man. Soon enough, the most senior of the four waved Takeshi inside.

"Make it quick, workman, the night is getting late."

The workman smiled revealing a few missing teeth and grasped the guard's hand in a friendly shake, "I'll fix this up in record time; you couldn't have gotten a better workman on the job."

"Yeah, yeah, in you go", replied the head guard impatiently as wrested his hand away from the workman and signaled to open the gates.

Asuma watched the workman and his cart disappear from view as the Hyuuga Compound's gates shut imperiously behind them.

Then, his earpiece buzzed to life again.

"_Shikaku here; Kakashi has successfully entered the compound. Asuma get ready to move; Minato stay on standby outside the gates."_

Asuma looked towards a section of wall roughly fifty meters away from the northern gate.

Nestled into the wall was a decorative window styled in the stained glass favored by the Hyuuga.

Asuma quietly approached the window avoiding the attention of the guards at the gate.

From the other side of the wall, he heard the latch being undone as the window was pushed open from the inside. A few seconds later, a familiar scarred workman poked his head out the window grinning to Asuma.

"This scar makeup is beginning to make my skin itch", drawled Kakashi.

"Props to Shikaku's work, you're even uglier than usual", returned Asuma cheekily as he scrambled through the open window.

"_Asuma speaking; Entrance successful."_

A few seconds later, Shikaku responded.

"_Excellent. Asuma, turn right from your immediate position. There's an entrance to the servant's quarters 200 meters from your location."_

"_Meanwhile, Kakashi, stay outside and pretend to work on your task. Shadow Asuma from a distance."_

Asuma sidled against the wall of the Hyuuga compound hiding within the shadows. He slowly maneuvered across the gardens to the servant's entrance which was currently empty of activity. After double checking his surroundings, he ducked through the entrance into the compound.

"_The schematics show three main hallways," reminded Shikaku, "you'll want to take the rightmost hallway all the way to the western wing."_

"_I'm reaching my shadow's sensory limit, but I can detect somewhere between three to five guards in the western hallway."_

Asuma tapped his earpiece, _"Kakashi, can you setup a distraction?"_

"_Roger that, boss."_

Outside, he heard Kakashi swearing in his workman's accent as a water-pipe exploded showering the entire gardens in mist.

"DON'T WORRY, I HAVE IT UNDER CONTROL.", waved Kakashi unconvincingly as Hyuuga guards began to swarm the commotion.

Asuma watched as two guards from the western wing joined the group gathering outside around Kakashi's spectacle.

He crept behind the remaining two guards unsheathing his trench knives.

Steel flashed as he swept behind the first guard slamming the blunt end of his knife into the man's temple. Before the second guard could cry out, Asuma delivered a roundhouse kick to the guard's neck riding the momentum from his previous attack.

After catching the guard and gently lowering him to the floor, Asuma continued forwards towards the end of the hallway.

Suddenly, shouts arose from inside the compound as an alarm suddenly began blaring.

"_Shit!", Asuma mentally swore, "it seems like someone's seen me with Byakugan through the walls"_

His careful walk transformed into a mad dash as he ran towards the Hyuuga treasury.

Tapping his earpiece, _"Shikaku, how far away am I from the treasury?"_

"_Just another 100 meters. It'll be a large double-doorway on your left.", Shikaku buzzed back._

Asuma turned the corner looking for the specified set of doorways in a frenzy.

"If you're looking for the treasury, it's over here", drifted a calm voice from the end of the hallway.

Asuma startled as the form of a man emerged from the shadows dressed in the immaculate white yukata favored by the Hyuuga Clan. He walked with the grace of a predator, opaque eyes narrowed at Asuma.

"I am Hyuuga Hizashi. And we Hyuuga don't take kindly to thieves, Sarutobi Asuma."

Hizashi settled into a combat stance as the veins around his eyes began to bulge.

**Byakugan: Release**

Asuma gripped his knives and dashed forwards as he flared his chakra coating his blades in wind.

Hizashi moved to engage in hand-to-hand as Asuma swung his left knife in an undercut.

Spinning with the grace of a dancer, Hizashi dodged the slash and pivoted on his heel delivering a palm thrust towards Asuma's ribs.

Quickly reversing the momentum of his knife thrust, Asuma deftly caught Hizashi's palm between his elbow and knee attempting to crush Hizashi's hand.

Hizashi's Byakugan flared as he released a wave of chakra pushing his own body sideways. In a maneuver of absurd dexterity, he caught Asuma's elbow in midair, swung himself around Asuma, and used his free hand to aim a strike at the back of Asuma's neck.

Forced to disengage from close combat, Asuma flared a wave of wind chakra blowing himself ten meters backwards. He rubbed his elbow eyeing Hizashi more warily now.

"_Normally, you can read an opponent by watching his eye movements. But the Hyuuga are different – they can attack without having to move their eyes with that 360 vision of theirs."_

Hizashi mockingly narrowed his eyes, "Is this what the Sarutobi clan has been reduced to? Playing with knife tricks fit for a street urchin?"

"_Good, he's underestimating me... I can use that Hyuuga arrogance to my advantage", thought Asuma._

Coating his knives in wind chakra again, Asuma moved once again towards Hizashi to engage. Reaching into his pockets, he lobbed a smoke bomb at his opponent cloaking the entire hallway in smoke.

"Useless", intoned Hizashi.

Lowering his arms into a traditional stance, Hizashi began rotating on his left heel expelling chakra in a rotating dome.

**KAITEN: Eight Trigrams Revolving Heaven**

"_I swear these Hyuuga have the most pretentious names for their jutsu", Asuma complained mentally._

As the smoke cleared, Asuma appeared behind Hizashi swinging his right knife.

Without turning, Hizashi ducked the overhead strike and sent a palm thrust upwards towards Asuma.

Asuma dodged the strike by generating a wind current to push him gently rightwards and followed immediately with a left-hand stab.

Hizashi caught Asuma's left hand mere inches from his abdomen as the two men stared at each other in a mutual lockdown.

"You're outclassed in every way that matters, Sarutobi. That much should be self-evident", stated Hizashi.

Asuma only grinned mockingly in reply.

Suddenly, the wind chakra surrounding Asuma's knife extended outwards into a full-length sabre stabbing Hizashi's abdomen.

Hizashi's eyes widened in shock as he expulsed an enormous amount of chakra in an attempt to push Asuma backwards.

Sensing the incoming wave, Asuma released his left knife letting himself be blown backwards.

He watched in curiosity as Hizashi coated his left hand in lighting chakra and cauterized the wound on his abdomen. The man then turned to face Asuma to glare hatefully.

"You're a tricky little rat, aren't you?" Hizashi grimaced. Lightning began to crackle around the man's frame as he settled into an altered Hyuuga battle stance.

Historically, the Hyuuga clan have been known for their religious adherence to traditional clan hand-to-hand jyuuken. When utilized with the Byakugan, a skilled jyuuken user can selectively target an opponent's chakra meridians or nerve clusters with devastating accuracy. For generations, the Hyuuga have fought this way with numerous victories to their name. Traditional jyuuken was accepted to be the pinnacle of all taijutsu – until Hizashi Hyuuga bastardized the technique by incorporating his own lightning release into the forms.

Granted, the Hyuuga elders initially decried his combining an elemental release with the jyuuken. But the results spoke for themselves – Hizashi's fighting style had no longer needed to hit exact meridians or nerve clusters; it just needed to hit the opponent once to fry their entire nervous system.

Asuma eyed Hizashi's technique warily as he extended his remaining knife into a wind sabre.

Taking the offensive, Hizashi dashed forwards, hands poised to strike.

Asuma backpedaled as Hizashi unleashed a barrage of palm strikes which he warded off with his remaining blade. Every attempt to counter-attack was stopped instantly by another barrage of attacks from Hizashi.

Hizashi's footwork began twisting even faster as his next strike narrowly singed Asuma's beard.

In a bid for distance, Asuma summoned up his chakra reserves.

**Wind Release: Skakujo Twister!**

Currents of wind swirled dangerously around Asuma in a shield as Hizashi was forced to disengage for a moment.

Capitalizing on his opponent's hesitation, Asuma bit his thumb and formed a handsign to channel his remaining reserves.

"_I hope the old monkey isn't still annoyed at me…"_

**SUMMONING JUTSU: MONKEY KING ENMA!**

An enormous wave of chakra emanated from Asuma as he called upon the Sarutobi clan's oldest ally. An intricate spiral seal appeared on the ground in front of him as the Monkey King emerged into existence from the spirit world.

"BRAT, WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT SUMMONING ME?", bellowed Enma as he surveyed his surroundings.

Asuma raised his hands and smiled placatingly, "Can we settle our little spat after we put our opponent down?'

The ancient monkey only grumbled as he settled into a battle stance eyeing his Hyuuga opponent, "This is only for ol' times sake... Don't go getting used to this."

Hizashi snorted in contempt at the bickering duo and moved to engage Asuma once again. Before he could close the distance, the monkey king appeared in his path stonewalling the Hyuuga.

Meanwhile, Asuma took a deep breath focusing on his near empty chakra reserves. Slowly, he began to reach out to the ambient chakra in the air around him as he focused on his own heartbeat.

He thought back to the years of training he did under his late father and Enma. The monkey tribe was one of the oldest summoning contracts, a tribe some believed to even pre-date mankind itself. As the original sages themselves, the monkey's guarded their techniques jealously only allowing their most trusted contractors access.

One heartbeat…

He took another deep breath as he began to draw the ambient chakra into his near empty chakra network. The influx was intoxicating and he forced himself to continue focusing on his heartbeat.

He thought back to all of the times Enma had beat safe usage of natural chakra into his head; he could hear the old monkey's voice as if it were yesterday. Natural chakra is like a drug to all natural lifeforms. Even in moderation, a user of the sage arts is vulnerable to bestial madness as the chakra brings out our most animalistic instincts. In overdose, natural chakra will corrupt organic lifeforms irreversibly transforming them to stone.

Two heartbeats…

He took a final deep breath as he began to mix the ambient chakra with his own remaining stores and distribute it throughout his body. All of his senses immediately heightened as the sound of his own heartbeat felt like a drum pulsing in his ears.

Asuma's memory flashed back to the day he had completed his sage training. He remembered his father's proud smile as he ruffled his son's hair.

"_Remember Asuma, the sage arts are the pinnacle of the Sarutobi clan's battle techniques. Their enormous power has always been used to protect the Sarutobi family, and defend our allies. I hope that if you ever find yourself needing this power, you'll wield it justly to defend Konoha from her enemies in my place."_

Three heartbeats…

**Sage Arts: RELEASE**

* * *

Shisui leapt across the rooftops as he hurried in the direction of the Hyuuga Compound.

He had been following his nightly patrol route when he heard the alarms go off. With the village peace balancing on a knife's edge, he knew he needed to resolve whatever was going on as quickly as possible. After sending a request for reinforcements, he instantly ran off in the direction of the commotion.

As he approached the Hyuuga compound, a sealing barrier suddenly flared into existence in front of him. Skidding to a stop, Shisui looked around for movement.

A kick materialized from his left as a familiar shock of blonde hair entered his field of vision.

Sharingan flaring to life, Shisui blocked Minato's ankle and flickered backwards ten meters.

"I was waiting for you, Uchiha Shisui", gritted Minato, "You seem to be the Uchiha's favorite dog to send running into every little scrap"

"_He's a lot more acerbic than I remember", thought Shisui._

Minato blurred out of sight as he once again closed the distance between himself and Shisui.

Sharingan providing a shadow of Minato's fist a second before it appeared, Shisui gripped Minato's wrist staring into the man's glacial blue eyes.

"_I heard rumors that the Sandaime was grooming Minato to take his place in a few years… Perhaps it's for the better that such a spiteful man never took the hat."_

"Your recklessness will be your undoing. I expected more from a man of your reputation.", intoned Shisui.

Minato snarled, "I have no mercy for monsters like you. How many families have you broken in your quest for power? How many sons have you killed in your warpath across my village? How many daughters have you murdered while you arrogantly play god with the people of Konoha?"

Shisui opened his mouth to reply, but Minato had already blitzed in front of him again. He grabbed Shisui's wrist with his left hand while his right palm glowed with chakra as a compressed blue sphere blinked into existence.

**RASENGAN**

The rotating sphere of chakra had begun grinding into Shisui's ribcage before he managed to flicker away.

Inspecting the wound, Shisui focused his chakra on knitting together the tears in his flesh while watching Minato more carefully now.

Meanwhile, Minato drew a kanji in the air around him which glowed as chakra infused into the symbol.

A deluge of toad oil erupted from the seal spewing into the air around Minato.

Immediately, Shisui built an a flux of chakra into his lungs to ignite the oil.

**Fire Release: Grand Fireball Jutsu**

Minato drew a second seal on his own flesh as a second kanji glowed into existence.

Suddenly, Shisui felt a flash of pain on his wrist as a third kanji surfaced into view on the backside of his wrist.

"_He must have planted it on me when he grabbed my wrist in our last exchange!"_

Shisui felt a stomach-lurching pulling force as the seal swapped the locations of himself with Minato in the center of the toad oil just as Shisui's fireball ignited into an explosive combustion.

In a moment of panic, Shisui tapped his deepest chakra reserves in desperation.

**WIND RELEASE: VACUUM WAVE**

From the inside of Minato's conflagration, a second supernova erupted as Shisui unleashed his own surge of chakra. The outwards pressure generated from his technique had created a small vacuum in which all of the air had been pushed outwards. Inside that vacuum, Shisui was protected by the lack of requisite oxygen for fire to burn.

By the time the smoke cleared, Minato's hands were already flashing through another set of hand-seals.

**Lightning Release: Flash Bolt**

Desperate to conserve his remaining chakra, Shisui flickered out of the way of the lightning arcs.

"_He knows that I'm low on chakra. I'm going to have to try and force some hand-to-hand combat…"_

Shisui flickered in front of Minato feinting left with a kunai. Minato dodged rightwards anticipating Shisui's next punch immediately.

Shisui's Sharingan spun as shadows extended from Minato's form showing his next move. Guided by precognition, Shisui weaved through Minato's counterattack slamming a fist into his stomach.

Retreating backwards, Minato began purposefully maintaining mid-range distance from Shisui as he warily avoided further hand-to-hand combat.

Stalling for time, Shisui paused to ask, "From one shinobi to another, what separates the blood on my hands from that on yours?"

Minato grimaced, "Intent – we Konoha-nin fight to protect our village. I doubt you understand what that means as an Uchiha though; it's always the clan first for you lot."

"Don't pretend to understand anything about me. Everything I've done as a shinobi has been in pursuit of protecting this village", snarled Shisui, "It's your blind prejudice against the Uchiha that drove us into this situation. Just like the Sandaime and the elders before you, you've always condemned our clan as a family of madmen."

Shisui continued, "For generations, the Uchiha have defended Konoha loyally. We've lost brothers, sisters, parents, and children in service to this village. And what do we get in return? Suspicion and paranoia as we're treated like second-class citizens."

Minato rebuked back, "So people looked at you a little suspiciously? So that justifies your clan to break oath and murder the Hokage you had sworn yourself to? Does it justify starting a civil war that has claimed the lives of hundreds? Truly a clan of madmen, indeed…"

A horn signaling the arrival of reinforcements sounded in the distance.

Suddenly, Minato's earpiece buzzed to life as Shikaku's voice came across the line,

"_Minato and Kakashi, start moving towards where Asuma is. Minato, we're going to need your little trick to get us out of this one."_

Minato sighed and flashed Shisui one last icy look.

"You're lucky my teammates need me, we'll settle this another time."

And with that, Minato jumped backwards disappearing across the barrier seal that had started the battle initially.

* * *

Asuma opened his eyes as his sage-enhanced hearing picked up the sound of reinforcements arriving in the distance.

Enma was still holding Hizashi back at a distance in a deadlock with his bo staff.

Seeing Asuma's active sage mode, Enma gave a grizzled nod of respect to the Sarutobi and disengaged Hizashi.

"Alright partner, what's the plan?", questioned Enma.

"Keep holding Hizashi in close combat", replied Asuma, "I have a plan flip his own lightning release against him"

As Enma rushed forwards with a powerful overhead swing of his bo staff, Asuma began permeating his own wind-natured chakra into the air around them.

He closed his eyes as he mixed his own chakra with the atmosphere around them affording him control of the air itself.

"_Nearly 80% of atmosphere is composed of diatomic Nitrogen, this will almost be too easy…"_

Asuma began to sift out the nitrogenous component from the air around him as he pushed the leftover gases away. He then started pushing the concentrated nitrogen towards Hizashi, the gas being invisible to even the ocular prowess of the Byakugan.

Seconds before the gas made contact with Hizashi's lightning armor, Asuma formed a release hand seal.

**Summoning Jutsu: RELEASE**

Enma puffed out of existence mid-swing of his bo staff as he was de-summoned back.

The next instant, the nitrogenous cloud made contact with Hizashi's lightning instigating an explosive chemical reaction as atmospheric nitrogen was reduced to ammonia.

Hizashi screamed as the lightning around him generated a combustible cloud of ammonia. In an auto-catalyzed reaction, the exothermic conversion released enough heat to immediately combust the remaining nitrogen in the air carpeting Hizashi with horrific burns.

Asuma sighed as he said a quick prayer for his defeated opponent. Bypassing the treasury's lock with a sample of Hizashi's blood, he was joined shortly by Kakashi and Minato who raised a sealing barrier around the entrance of the vault.

Minato let out an exhausted breath as he turned to Asuma, "Hurry up and get what we need; I can hold this barrier for maybe 60 more seconds at best."

Their earpieces buzzed one last time.

"_Shikaku speaking, get what you need quickly and meet me back at the base. There's a flock of Hyuuga outside your barrier waiting to eviscerate you."_

Asuma sifted through the treasury quickly finding the stolen Sarutobi Clan Scrolls that he had come for. Meanwhile, Kakashi had grabbed an armful of treasury notes and storage scrolls filled with golden ryo.

Targets secured, they each placed a hand on Minato's shoulder whose eyebrows scrunched in concentration as he focused his chakra.

**Hiraishin: The Flying Thunder God Technique**

And with a yellow flash, the three men tumbled out on the other side of the village back in their little bunker, safe and sound.

* * *

Chapter 2 End


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Here's the third installment of the chapter! The ideas have been swimming around in my head for awhile and I'm finally glad to get them down onto paper.**

* * *

Shisui stifled a yawn as he sat on the upper ring of Konoha's Council Chamber. The meeting had just begun and he was already tired of the posturing and politics of the various delegates. He turned his attention to the podium as Uchiha Fugaku rose from his seat silently demanding attention.

"As the Acting Head of Konoha's Council, I would like to thank each and every one for answering my request to assemble. The topics of today's meeting are of upmost importance to the continued safety of our village." opened Fugaku.

"We have reason to believe that there is a new criminal faction hiding in Konoha's shadows. Just yesterday evening, our officers confirmed a burglary from the Hyuuga Estate that left four clansmen and one Hizashi Hyuuga hospitalized. Our doctors are unsure whether Hizashi will survive the morning."

At this, the Council devolved into whispers as a quiet panic grew amongst the delegates.

"DELEGATES." Fugaku raised his voice. "This is not the time for rumor-mongering. Our police have confirmed the identity of three of the intruders. Amongst them was Sarutobi Asuma…"

"Then why haven't your police force caught him yet?", rudely cut in Tanigawa Takehiro, a silk merchant from the Ministry of Commerce. "Heaven knows the Ministry of Commerce has set aside an enormous sum for the bounty on Sarutobi's head."

"If you're done interrupting, Merchant Tanigawa, then allow me to finish", returned Fugaku. "Sarutobi Asuma was aided by the Copy-Nin Kakashi and the infamous Namikaze Minato, a previous Hokage candidate for the Yondaime position. Together, this is a team of the most dangerous group of criminals in Konoha."

Hyuuga Hiashi slowly rose from his traditional seat. "These men carried out a terrorist attack on my home yesterday night. Know that you will have the entire strength of the Hyuuga Clan aiding you in bringing these criminals to justice."

Fugaku gave a withering glare at the Hyuuga head, "I haven't forgotten the issue of the ten treasury scrolls stolen from the Hyuuga Vault. With 3,000,000 ryo stored in each scroll, your clan has lost a total of thirty million ryo that originally belonged to Konoha's Ministry of Tax and Revenue. Perhaps it was a folly to trust your family…"

"I assure you the Hyuuga Clan is expending every resource in recovering the lost funds." Gritted out Hiashi. "Though we would appreciate assistance from the other clans of Konoha, especially from those willing to prove their loyalty to our new government..."

Inuzuka Tsume gave a bark of laughter, "The Inuzuka Clan gives our most sincere apologies to the Hyuuga Clan's loss, I assure you. I'm sure all of my clan members will be supporting the Hyuuga Clan in spirit as they continue their search tirelessly." smirked Tsume.

Fugaku's eyes narrowed at the Inuzuka head. "As the presiding Governor General of Konoha, I command the Inuzuka Clan to lend immediate assistance to the Hyuuga Clan in their search."

"Haaaah, fuck off Fugaku", remarked Tsume as she rolled her eyes. "I don't answer to your little made-up office; the Inuzuka have never acknowledged the authority of your so-called 'noble' clans."

"Well, we've got a much bigger problem than your vendetta against the noble clans or even criminals like Sarutobi", sniped back Fugaku.

Fugaku took produced a messenger report and unfurled it with a serious look.

"Just a few hours ago, the Uchiha Military Outpost sighted Orochimaru of the Sannin in the city of Tanzaku Gai, just twenty kilometers north of Konoha. He was seen hosting a foreign shinobi who we have identified to be Darui of the Storm Release. We have reason to suspect that the traitor Orochimaru is coordinating with Kumo (Cloud) to invade the Land of Fire." reported Fugaku.

A deep voice rumbled from the back of the room, "Tsume-san, while I appreciate your candidness, perhaps a little more decorum for the situation?" asked Akamichi Chouza as he stood up.

Yamanaka Inoichi joined his old teammate's side, "Clan Yamanaka and Clan Akamichi have a proposal for Clan Uchiha – if you release Nara Shikaku into our custody, then we will lend our forces to helping defend the village from foreign intrusion."

Fugaku flushed before admitting, "We no longer have Nara Shikaku. He escaped two nights prior and his current location is unknown."

Inoichi and Chouza exchanged a brief look with one another.

"Then, Clans Yamanaka and Akamichi hereby withdraw their offer of assistance", announced Chouza.

Fugaku's eyes flashed red dangerously for a moment, "Do you enjoy making a mockery of our government? By the power instilled in my position has Governor General, I command your assistance in our military operations. Have you no pride as Konoha shinobi?"

Chouza's face hardened as he stared at Fugaku impassively. "The Akamichi have never bowed to the Uchiha. We attend these meetings solely to protect the peace of Konoha. Do not mistake my cooperation for subservience – we recognize no sovereign except Lord Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure."

"HIRUZEN IS DEAD". roared Fugaku as he slammed his hands into the podium. But before he could continue, a grizzled hand gripped Fugaku's shoulder as a man approached him from behind.

"Peace, Fugaku", spoke the newcomer before turning to address the Council.

"I am Uchiha Kagome. While most here only know me around the village as a washed-up retiree, some here still remember me from my time as a Field Commander during the First and Second Shinobi War."

Kagome smiled warmly and looked around the room locking eyes with the veterans of the previous wars giving nods of respect to each.

"We've sacrificed much to protect this village that we love. We've bled on the battlefield to protect this village that we love. We've buried family into early graves for this village that we love."

"If you'll lend me your ears, I've come to the Council today to urge everyone to stand united against the reports of foreign interests working against Konoha."

Kagome glanced around the room at the bickering delegates and heated expressions.

"I've watched Konoha during times of peace and I've watched it during times of war. If you're willing to listen to this old man's advice one last time, then know that Konoha is only truly strong when we are united as one."

With this, Uchiha Kagome raised his head and addressed the chamber in a sincere bid.

"If Konoha is something that you cherish, then I beg of you to cease this infighting and work with me to help protect our home."

Shisui swallowed a lump in his throat as he watched his father prostrate himself before the Council.

Inuzuka Tsume was the first to move as she stood and held Kagome's gaze evaluating the man in front of her.

"Raise your head, Kagome, we served together back during the siege of Sungakure. Let it be known that the Inuzuka don't forget their pack" she barked, "Clan Inuzuka will stand with Clan Uchiha."

Murmurs broke out as the rest of the Council whispered at Tsume's acquiescence.

"Perhaps I spoke too rashly…", granted Chouza

"Clan Akamichi will stand with Clan Uchiha." granted the giant man.

"And Clan Yamanaka will stand with Clan Uchiha." stated Inoichi as he stood next to Chouza.

And one by one, the support began to trickle in as the bickering clan heads slowly united behind Uchiha Kagome's sincere plea.

Kagome smiled to each and every member of the Council giving nods of appreciation to those he made eye contact with.

"The Uchiha Clan will send their best agents to Tanzaku Gai to investigate the meeting between Orochimaru and the Kumo shinobi. Meanwhile, the Hyuuga Clan will continue pursuing Sarutobi Asuma in Konoha. We will reconvene the esteemed Council as soon as we have an update."

He glanced at Fugaku beside him before continuing, "By the power vested in my position, I ask to adjourn this Council meeting."

The rest of the Council mumbled unanimously and Fugaku signaled that the meeting was officially concluded.

* * *

"Thirty million ryo", crowed Asuma as he finished counted the treasury scrolls they had stolen from the Hyuuga.

"Seems like we're not going to be eating canned food much longer" noted Kakashi as he lounged on his cot reading his trademark orange book.

"I've been thinking that it might be time to move out of this little bunker." replied Asuma.

"We need to establish an actual base of operations where we can maintain influence and kindle our rebellion."

Asuma looked towards Shikaku, "Any ideas on a good location to operate from? Ideally we'd be somewhere that the new government's presence is weak."

Shikaku hummed and was silent for a moment.

"Troublesome… Well, although it might be counter-intuitive, our best bet might actually be to setup base outside of Konoha for the time-being. Somewhere where the government has few agents, but not too far away either."

Shikaku closed his eyes in contemplation.

"What about Tanzaku Gai just twenty kilometers north of here? It's the Land of Fire's second largest city and infamous for its lucrative gambling rings. Historically, Tanzaku Gai has been controlled by powerful crime syndicates, but we may have enough firepower to cut out a slice for ourselves."

Asuma nodded his head weighing the option.

Looking around at their rundown bunker distastefully, he nodded, "Alright, let's pay a little visit to Tanzaku Gai."

oOoOoOo

The night was dark as the four men exited the village. Sneaking out was laughably easy compared to trying to enter the village premises.

Gliding through the treetops using chakra-enhanced leaps, the squad of four reached Tanzaku Gai in a matter of minutes. The bright skyline of the gambling hub provided a luminous contrast against the pitch-black sky. After entering the city, they cut a direct path into the crowds of Tanzaku Gai's red-light district blending in with the other cloaked individuals and shady figures.

Asuma motioned towards a magnificent pagoda that spiraled into the night where a large crowd of people were waiting in line for entry.

"That's the Oriental Pearl. Earlier last year, the Hozuki family paid a sum of eight-hundred million ryo for the property and converted it into a casino. Today, it's the fourth largest gambling ring in the entire city of Tanzaku Gai."

Asuma looked to Kakashi and Minato, "While Shikaku and I take care of some business here at the casino, can you two find us a place to stay temporarily? You should be able to book a nice hotel under an alias; the people of Tanzaku Gai typically don't ask too many questions."

Minato and Kakashi split off into the night as Asuma and Shikaku sidled into line cutting ahead of some unsuspecting tourists.

Taking advantage of the loud clamor around them, Asuma turned to Shikaku.

"We're here to meet a member of the Hozuki family, the higher up, the better. If everything goes right, we may be able to convince them to ditch their current underworld backers and take us into employment instead. It'll give us a good entrance into the Tanzaku Gai nightlife."

"The eldest son and heir apparent, Hozuki Kyoshiro, is known to frequent the Oriental Pearl on weekend nights. He's somewhere in the pagoda tonight, we just have to find him", continued Asuma.

Shikaku nodded as they reached the front of the line. Asuma smiled at the pair of bouncers waiting for them at the door and made a show of the money he was carrying with a flourish. The two bouncers looked at one another and nodded him through with Shikaku.

The inside of the pagoda was absolutely breathtaking. The inside of the building was one large atrium that spiraled six stories upwards. The ground floor was where the majority of the customers milled around admiring the gold décor and lavish paintings on display around lacquered mahogany tables where gamblers were playing cards.

Asuma waded through the crowd to the central desk where an employee was exchanging chips for currency.

"What are the denominations used here?" queried Asuma.

The teller looked up giving Asuma an evaluating look.

"Welcome to the Oriental Pearl. Any currency you wish to gamble must first be exchanged for our in-house chips before you can play. The exchange rate is one thousand ryo per blue chip, ten thousand ryo per green chip, one hundred thousand per red chip, and one million ryo per black chip. Platinum chips will be unavailable until you reach the fourth floor of the pagoda."

Asuma hummed before taking out a scroll containing ten million ryo, "I'll exchange this for ten black chips. Are there any other in-house rules I should be aware of?"

The teller responded, "The Oriental Pearl is divided by floors. Currently, we are on the ground floor which is universal access to all guests. If you wish to proceed to the second floor, all games begin with a minimum buy-in of one hundred thousand ryo. Likewise, on the third floor, the minimum begins at one million ryo. Subsequent floors have no buy-in and are strictly invite only."

Asuma thanked the teller as he turned around and pushed through the crowd back to Shikaku to relay him the information.

"So we'll likely have to catch Houzuki's attention somehow if we want to proceed to the upper floors… I have a feeling that's where we'll be most likely to find him" mused Shikaku.

"Well with our ten black chips, we can start on the third floor", quipped Asuma. "Let's try not to lose ten million ryo in one night."

The two men made their way to the elevator where they were stopped by a lithe blue-haired man dressed in a traditional kimono.

"Halt. As the custodian of the elevator, I would like to first confirm your destination and chip balance" smiled the man disarmingly as he gracefully maneuvered a short-sword into sight.

Asuma nodded to the man, "Third floor; we plan on betting using black chips so that should satisfy the minimum buy-in."

Gracefully shrugging his short-sword back out of sight, the blue-haired man bowed and escorted them into the elevator. The light for the third floor lit up and Asuma and Shikaku felt the elevator begin to move.

After reaching their destination, their escort bowed them out of the elevator and bid them good luck.

The third-floor didn't have the same lavish opulence as the ground level, and was instead decorated with a more subtle statement of wealth. Waiters carried around complimentary champagnes serving well-dressed guests spread out between nine different tables of games.

Beckoning Shikaku to follow him, Asuma wandered over the table with the largest crowd. Seated at the table were three men and a raven-haired woman who seemed to have the largest pile of chips.

The onlookers leered at the raven-haired beauty whose dress hugged her waist and left her back bare to the gazes of wandering eyes. She had propped her cheek on her palms smiling in a catlike manner as she pushed her shoulders together emphasizing her assets.

The other three men at the table didn't look nearly as happy as they eyed their own dwindling pile of chips. At the center of the table was an employee dressed in a tuxedo that marked him as the dealer.

"Black-Jack: Starting buy-in has reset to one black chip."

All four players pushed one black chip each to the center of the table and the dealer dealt each player two cards, one face-up and one face-down"

The crowd started whispering excitedly as the leftmost man was dealt an Ace of Clubs.

"Ara ara, Kensuke-san, a lucky pull indeed", commented the woman as she peeked at her facedown card and grimaced at her own Two of Spades face-up on the table.

The dealer spoke again, "Raise, call, or fold?"

Two of the men withdrew with scowls while Kensuke looked at his own small pile of black chips.

"Raise: three chips." responded Kensuke confidently as he leered at the woman across the table, "Care to match me, Kurenai-san?"

Kurenai only smiled as she pushed three chips from her own pile forwards.

The dealer continued unruffled, "Hit or Stay?"

"Stay", responded Kensuke.

"Hit", responded Kurenai.

The dealer dealt Kurenai another card and then repeated, "Raise, call, or fold?"

Giving her opponent a charming smile, Kurenai began, "How about we raise the stakes a little? I'll give you a chance to win back everything you've lost tonight."

She began tracing a circle around a pile of fifteen black chips enticingly as she smirked at the now nervous-looking Kensuke.

"Y-y-you bitch, don't try and bluff with me" stammered Kensuke.

"Now, now, no need to be rude. We're all friends here, aren't we?" murmured Kurenai as she stared at Kensuke with her alluringly crimson eyes.

Asuma had to bite his own cheek for a second to snap out the daze he was in from watching her. The pain snapped him back to reality as he cleared his head of the raven-haired beauty.

"_It's almost as if she can control the flow of attention in the room. There's something unnaturally captivating about this woman beyond her looks... genjutsu maybe? But that shouldn't be possible…"_

As he was studying the woman in front of him, she tilted her head slightly making eye contact with Asuma. Before he could look away, she gave him a secretive smile and wink.

"_Caught you looking."_

Asuma shook his head with a small smile and refocused his attentions on the nervous Kensuke who was cutting his remaining chips.

"I only have twelve black chips left" gritted Kensuke.

"Well, that's not enough to win back the fifteen I have here", mused Kurenai. "Is there nothing else you can put up?"

Kensuke looked over to the dealer before a resolute expression crossed his face. He reached his hands around the back of his neck and unclasped a diamond necklace. "Dealer, could you serve as an official witness to a contract? I wish to exchange this necklace as equivalence for 3 black chips."

"Acknowledged waiting approval of the other party" responded the dealer.

Kurenai eyed the necklace appraisingly, "I wouldn't give that necklace more than half a black chip on a good day."

Kensuke purpled in rage, "This is a treasure that has been in my family for generations. When I inherited it from my late father, it was appraised to be over four million ryo."

Kurenai waved her hand carelessly in the air, "Alright whatever, I'll agree to your contract. Your necklace will stand as three black chips."

"Contract approved." intonated the dealer. "The bet has been raised to 15 black chips per side. Hit or Stay?"

"Stay", responded Kensuke.

"Stay", smiled Kurenai.

"Reveal your cards", dictated the dealer.

Kensuke crowed victoriously as he flipped over a King of Spades to join the Ace of Clubs.

"Twenty-one! I'll be taking those chips, thank you."

Kurenai only smiled mysteriously as she fingered the face-up Two of Spades in front of her.

Slowly she began to flip over her remaining two cards and pushed her three cards towards Kensuke.

Two of Spades.

Eight of Hearts.

Jack of Clubs.

"Bad luck, Kensuke, looks like I've got Black-Jack" replied Kurenai. "Better luck next time."

Seductively leaning over to her opponent, she unclasped Kensuke's diamond necklace and collected his remaining chips. She made a quick gesture to the dealer who announced,

"Mistress Kurenai will be withdrawing for the evening. With her, she will be taking a total of 52 black chips, 31 red chips, and 116 green chips for a total of 56,260,000 million ryo."

Having collected her pile of chips, she picked up her dress and curtseyed bidding the dealer goodnight.

Still puzzling over her victory, Asuma made a move to engage her in conversation as she walked past him.

Giving him a brief glance, Kurenai whispered, "I'm a bit tired to be humoring other men right now. If you want to talk, perhaps you could buy me a drink?" as she lithely maneuvered around Asuma.

Asuma tossed his black chips to Shikaku who gave him an exasperated look as he turned to follow Kurenai to the open bar.

Beckoning to the bartender with a few ryo, he ordered, "Can I get two Old Fashions with bourbon, stirred without sugar?"

The bartender mixed the drinks as Asuma sat down at the open stool beside Kurenai.

"I suppose congratulations are in order; you walked away with enough money to retire comfortably tonight", opened Asuma.

Kurenai gave him an appraising look, "What do you want?"

Asuma smiled as the drinks arrived, and passed one to Kurenai, "I'm in the market for a conman who can take me to the top floor of this establishment. I know you're a cheater, and a damned good one too."

Kurenai smiled sardonically, "What makes you think that? Perhaps I'm simply lucky, no?"

Asuma shook his head, "I not going to pretend to know how you did it. But what I do know is that you have some kind of ability to influence people's perception, to guide their attentions and misdirect."

Asuma continued, "That's where you've piqued my curiosity. The casinos of Tanzaku Gai are all consummate professionals in detecting chakra usage on the gambling tables. Yet you've clearly pulled something over them – if I'm going to climb to the next floor, I need your help and I'm willing to make a trade for something you want…"

Kurenai was silent for a moment.

"What could you possibly offer me in return for my help?" she queried.

Asuma hummed. "You're no regular civilian, are you? Don't bother answering that, we both know the aswer. I suspect you're here to climb the floors too for your own agenda."

Kurenai leaned back in her chair giving Asuma an appraising look, "Alright, so if there's hypothetically something I'm looking for on the upper floors?"

"Work with me. I need someone who knows the intricacies of the casino scene. In return, I'll provide the firepower you need to get yourself out of here if you thinks go south. The Hozuki family is mobbed up to their neck in mercenaries and contract killers."

"And what stops you from double-crossing me once we get to the top floor? It's hard to trust the word of a wanted man, isn't it, Sarutobi Asuma?"

Asuma let out a chuckle as she revealed his name. "Seems my reputation precedes me. How about some collateral then?"

He tossed her a scroll with three million ryo which she deftly caught in one hand.

"Three million ryo to take me to the top. If you call on my services at any point, then you'll have to return the money. Otherwise, it's yours to keep."

Kurenai smiled as she finished her drink and withdrew a wax seal from her coin pouch.

Asuma looked at the green dragon emblazoned on the seal curiously. "Isn't that the symbol of the Hozuki family?" he asked.

"Indeed." replied Kurenai, "A few nights earlier, I managed to secure an invitation to the fourth floor, but I didn't have enough funds for the level of stakes there. But now that I have fifty million in chips, I intend to return."

The volume in the room began to slowly crescendo as Asuma noticed a particularly large crowd of guests gathered around one table.

Curious about the commotion, Asuma and Kurenai left the bar and weaved their way through the crowd.

On the table at the center, there was a shogi board where two men stared deeply in concentration. On the left was a handsome aristocratic man dressed in colorful silks that wrapped extravagantly around his shoulders. And on the right, Nara Shikaku was sitting cross-legged in the chair studying the pieces on the board.

Picking up his Silver General piece, Shikaku advanced it pinning his opponents King piece ending the game and drawing a polite applause from the audience. Collecting his opponent's ten black chips from the other end of the table, Shikaku let out a tired sigh as his opponent laughed at his own defeat.

"Simply marvelous play, Lord Nara", chuckled the aristocrat.

"You play well yourself, Lord Ogawa." replied Shikaku amicably.

"Nonsense; I'm a novice compared to the titans on the upper floors", waved Ogawa, "Though if you're interested in raising the stakes, I might be able to connect you with some higher level opponents…"

Shikaku raised his head in response to the offer, "I'd be honored, my lord. I would definitely be interested in a few more rounds before the night ends."

"Excellent", boomed Ogawa who took Shikaku by the arm leading him towards the staircase at the end of the room.

Asuma watched as Shikaku disappeared around the staircase to the fourth floor. Sensing his next question, Kurenai led him to the same staircase where they were stopped by a pair of bouncers.

Kurenai quickly produced a wax seal with a green dragon emblazoned on the center. "I have an invitation from the proprietor of this establishment to the fourth floor."

The two bouncers looked at one another before letting Kurenai through.

"Ah, he's with me; I am allowed to bring my doubles partner upstairs, aren't I?" asked Kurenai nodding towards Asuma.

The two bouncers gave a grunt and moved aside to let Asuma through.

The couple climbed the spiral staircase to the fourth floor.

"Doubles partner?" queried Asuma.

Kurenai gave him a pretty smile as she explained, "I guess we're a team now. The majority of games on the fourth floor are partner-based. Don't worry about the games themselves, just follow my lead."

As they exited the stairway, they moved into a dimly lit room furnished with statues of various religious icons. Spread out through the room were finely polished granite tables where guests gathered either spectating or gambling chips.

Kurenai lightly brushed her fingers around Asuma's hand as she whispered into his ear.

"_Well, I've gotten you into the invite-only floors as promised. Feel free to wander off and do whatever you want; just remember your promise to come when I call, right?"_

With that, she wandered off into the crowd leaving Asuma to shake his head trying to break her spell.

On one end of the room, he caught sight of Shikaku sitting at a polished granite table playing shogi against a sharply dressed nobleman with a hawk-like face.

As he edged closer to Shikaku's table, he heard the onlookers whispering.

"_That's Hozuki Minamoto, the second son of the Hozuki clan…"_

"_Get out of the way, I can't see the board!"_

"_I wonder who's going to win, I've heard Hozuki is twenty-two games undefeated…" _

Asuma pushed his way to the front of the crowd as he studied the newly identified nobleman.

"_Hozuki Minamoto eh. Seems like an avid shogi fan if he's come down all the way from the sixth floor just to humor a new challenger…"_

The two opponents were silent as they both studied the shogi board with unadulterated focus.

"_I don't think I've even seen Shikaku this awake", mused Asuma._

Shikaku picked up his Bishop and moved it to a seemingly vulnerable position in front of Minamoto's Silver General.

Minamoto hummed to himself before ignoring the bishop and advancing his Silver General towards the corner of the board.

Shikaku frowned as he shifted to sit on his chair in cross-legged position. He furrowed his eyebrows as he studied the board in silence.

He touched his Gold General before shifting it forwards pinning his opponents Knight against his King.

Minamoto returned his Silver General to its original position two turns prior as he gave a worried glance towards his King.

Giving a measured look at his opponent, Shikaku brought his rook two steps forward pinning Minamoto's Silver General against his King.

Minamoto looked at his remaining available pieces before opting to move his King backwards one square.

And with a flourish of his hand, Shikaku pushed his Gold General against Minamoto's King trapping it on the corner of the board.

"Checkmate.", Shikaku smiled and extended a hand to his defeated opponent.

Hozuki Minamoto smiled good-naturedly as he took Shikaku's hand, "You have an absolutely brilliant mind for shogi, my friend. Congratulations on your winnings", he said as he pushed twenty black chips towards Shikaku's side of the table.

The nobleman continued, "If I could be so forward to ask for a minute of your time, I have a proposition I'd like to pick that mind of yours about. How about we go grab a few drinks at the bar? Feel free to bring that friend of yours over there with the beard." spoke Minamoto as he nodded towards Asuma.

Asuma walked over the duo and eyed the man warily.

"_How did he know we that Shikaku and I are together?"_

As if reading his mind, the hawk-eyed nobleman responded, "It's the way you both dress. No one else here is wearing the same style of sandals that are only favored in Konoha."

The group of three made their way to the bar as Minamoto waved for a private table.

Upon taking a seat, Minamoto looked Shikaku directly in the eyes. "So what's a Nara doing in my family's establishment – don't bother denying it, anyone involved in shogi can recognize a Nara from his looks alone. And more importantly, why did you bring a wanted criminal as infamous as Sarutobi Asuma with you?"

Shikaku was quiet for a moment as if evaluating his options. He gave Asuma a quick glance before opening, "We're here looking for a base of operations to conduct our own personal business."

Minamoto gave a dangerous smile to both men, "Well it just so happens that I might be able to help you out if you're looking to start up in Tanzaku Gai. If you do me a little favor, then I'll grant any reasonable request within the bounds of my family's power."

Asuma looked at the hawk-like nobleman intrigued, "And what job would nobleman with an endless supply of money need from washed-up shinobi like us?"

Minamoto narrowed his eyes and looked around surreptitiously before continuing, "I would like to place a hit on my elder brother Hozuki Kyoshiro, the proprietor of this little establishment. As everyone knows, my parents are soon to retire from family matters, and Kyoshiro is the favored son to inherit. Now, if hypothetically, he were to be killed in a terrorist attack by a wanted criminal…"

Asuma appraised the man in front of him carefully, "So you want me to murder your own brother…?"

He held Minamoto's eye contact for a few moments, and neither man blinked.

"Alright, consider it done." answered Asuma. "In exchange for our services, I'm expecting the hypothetical heir to the Hozuki fortune to support my little group's endeavors in Tanzaku Gai."

Minamoto's expression dissolved to a charming smile as he shook Asuma's hand and called to the bartender for a round of drinks on him.

After taking a few sips of his own drink, Minamoto rose from the table and produced a wax seal emblazoned with a green dragon emblem from his pocket.

"Come and find me when you've completed the job. This emblem will let you reach me."

He placed the emblem on the table, nodded towards the two men, and disappeared up the staircase leading to the upper floors.

Shortly after he left, Asuma caught a familiar scent of perfume as he turned just in time to see Kurenai drift up beside him.

"Was that Hozuki Minamoto that you were talking with?" she asked curiously.

"And if it was?" replied Asuma.

"As if I'm interested in small-fry like Minamoto", she laughed, "My business is with the elder brother, Kyoshiro."

Kurenai's expression turned serious, "Remember that promise that you owe me? I'm looking to cash it in right now."

"What do you need me to do?" queried Asuma.

Kurenai brushed a delicate hand against Asuma's face and pressed a searing kiss against his lips.

"Just trust in me. And play along with what I say." she asked.

Before Asuma could respond, she grasped his hand with hers and lead him to the center of the room where she waved towards an employee who immediately bowed at her summoning.

She addressed the suited man directly, "I'd like to place a public wager against the Hozuki clan. Tell your boss, Hozuki Kyoshiro, that I'm looking to gamble for the proprietary deed to this establishment, the Oriental Pearl."

The employee raised his eyebrow at her claim skeptically, "And what collateral are you looking to offer to match the value of a property worth over eight-hundred million ryo?."

Kurenai smiled as she intertwined her fingers with Asuma's.

"_My body feels really heavy… almost as if I've been poisoned" thought Asuma to himself._

Reaching into her back pocket, Kurenai took out a rolled up poster.

Feeling more tired by the second, Asuma wracked his mind for possible explanations to his quickly debilitating condition. Suddenly, it hit him like a thunderclap.

"_When she kissed me, her lipstick must have been laced with something…"_

Even through his groggy state of mind, Asuma was able to recognize his own wanted poster as Kurenai unfurled it for everyone to see.

"One fully-sedated Sarutobi Asuma – bounty of 840,000,000 ryo as per the order of Konoha's Ministry of Military Affairs" Kurenai read out from the poster.

And with that, Asuma's world went black.

* * *

End of Chapter 3.


End file.
